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KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18, 1932 y 8 Sheets-Sheet l )e S. R,SHELMIRE KNITTNG MACHINE Filed July 18, 1952 8 Sheets-Sheet 2 @vf/M ,26

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KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18, 1952 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 ct. T935.

S. R. SHELMIRE KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18, 1952 8 Sheets-Sheet 4llllii dw" i0 Oct. 1, 1935.

s. R. SHELMIRE 1 KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18J 1952 8 Sheets-Sheet 5sa y2 #IEM/Mfrs.

Oct. 1, 1935. R. SHELMIRE 2,016,055

KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18,. 1932 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 rm" l 1935- s. R.SHELMIRE 2,016,055

KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18, 1932 8 Sheets-Sheet 7 W/ 7' NESS @Uh L9350 5. Ri SHELMIRE 2,916,955

KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 18, 1932 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 Patented Oct. 1,1935 entre STATS Matas FFEQ KNITTING MACHINE Application July 18, 1932,Serial No. 623,057

.V16 Claims.

This invention relates to a knitting machine and specifically a machinein which patterns are produced by wrapping and a double sole is pro#duced in a stocking by the addition of a yarn in the sole of the footportion.

It is a broad object of the present invention to provide a machine ofnovel construction for the knitting of stockings in which the parts areso related that a maximum degree or" simplicity is attained even thoughthe machine is capable of producing elaborate results involving wrapdesigns and a double sole and gusset toe in stockmgs.

One of the subsidiary objects of the invention is the provision of amachine which may be used either for the production of Wrapped designsor the production of plain knitting, the latter being accomplishedwithout any interference from the Wrapping instrumentalities.Specically, so far as this object is concerned the wrapping mechanism iscarried by a head which may be moved upwardly away from the needlecylinder either with the latch ring or independently of the latch ring.When it is desired to gain access to the top of the needle cylinderduring the knitting of work containing wrapped designs, the wrap fingermechanism and the latch ring may be raised as a unit. On the other handduring adjustment, for example or the yarn fingers, the wrappingmechanism may be raised upwardly while the latch ring remains down init's operative position, it being thus possible to watch the operationwithout interference by the wrapping elements. Ac-

cess to the needle cylinder is gained in this case by raising the latchring only.

It is another object of the invention to provide improved means forguiding and tensioning wrap yarns in their progress from supply bobbinsto the laying fingers.

A .further object of the invention relates to the provision of a compactmeans for associating elements for transmitting controlling movementsfrom a master cam disc or drum to the elements to be ultimatelycontrolled. This means consists of a series oi nested hollow shaftscarrying levers acted upon by the cams on the cam drum and also leverswhich transmit the oscillations of the shafts to the elements which areto be controlled.

Still another object of the invention relates to the provision ofimproved means for controlling the action of needles to selectively takeor fail to take wrap yarns.

it is also the object of the invention to provide an improvedarrangement for properly manipulating a double sole yarn, particularlyin connection with means which will effect the feeding of main yarns andthe changing of such yarns to the needles without Ainterference with thewrapping devices or the yarns trailing therefrom to the needles. Inconnection with the double sole yarn mechanism means are provided forclamping and cutting this yarn, these means being in addition to theclamping and cutting means for the main yarns. There is also provisionto insure that the double sole yarn, when it is not to be engaged by theneedles, will not interfere with the normal operation of the machine.The last involves the incorporation oi means for bringing the doublesole yarn away from the needle circle within the normal face of thelatch ring and for maintaining it there by the use of proper tension andtake-up devices. The clamping and cutting mechanism which is used toclamp and cut the double sole yarn upon each revolution of the needlecylinder is also used to hold the double sole yarn during the knittingof those parts of a stocking in which it is not incorporated.

Other objects of the invention relating more particularly to details ofconstruction, whereby the objects briey enumerated above areaccomplished, will be apparent from the following description read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l is a right side elevation of the machine partly in section andwith other parts removed for clearness;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the machine from which various parts areremoved, certain portions thereof being shown in section;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing a detail of the wrap yarntensioning means;

Fig. 4 is a left side elevation of the machine;

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view illustrating more particularly thevarious parts acting upon the butts of the needles together with otherelements located adjacent these;

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section taken on a lower plane and illustratingmore particularly elements adapted to act upon needle jacks;

Fig. 7 is an inside elevation of a jack cam;

Fig. 7a is a plan view of the same;

Fig. 8 is a detail showing the means for controlling the stepping of apattern controlling trick wheel;

Fig. 9 is an enlarged vertical sectional View showing the wrappingmechanism and controlling devices therefor;

Fig. l0 is a horizontal section through the same; 55

the double sole yarn and the other elements is prevented when the doublesole yarn is not being knit;

Fig. l5 is a similar view showing a modified ar-` rangement of the latchring; Y

Fig. 16 is a vertical radial section through-one side of the needlecylinder showing the relationship between the needles and jacks andmechanism operating thereon;

Fig. 17 is a diagrammatic developed inside elevation of the cams adaptedto operate upon the wrap fingers, needles and jacks respectively;

AFigllS is a plan view of the device for tensioning and taking up thedouble sole yarn;

Fig. 19 is a vertical section .taken on the plane indicated by IQ-IS inFig. 18;` and Fig. 20 is a diagrammatic View illustrating therelationships oi the various controlling Vcams and also showing thediiferent types of needles associated in the'machine, the parts atdiiierent levels being shown at different radii.

The machine which is of the rotary needle type comprises an elongatedcylinder 2 mounted for rotation about a verticalaxis and provided withlongitudinally extending slots adapted to slidably receive needles 6provided with butts tof different lengths as will be hereafter pointedout, intermediate jacks l@ provided with butts i2 and lower jacks if!provided with Vremovable butts i6 and formed at their lower ends withcam engaging ledges H3. The needles and intermediate jacks are `designedto slidevertically within the slots, the needles being held in the slotsby the use oi the usual spring bands, while the intermediate jacks areheld therein by engagement with the cylindrical surfaces of certain camsas will -be hereafter pointed out. The lower jacks Irl are adapted toslide andalso pivot in vertical radial planes about points intermediateVtheir upper and' lower ends. To accomplish this the lower jacks havetheir inner edges formed as shown providing a point i9 about which theymay pivot when acted upon by suitable cams in a manner which will behereafter pointed out. These lower jacks are heldin position by a singlespring band, which, however, is not relied upon to maintain the jacks inany definite position although as will be'obvious from the drawingsthere will be atendency for the spring band to maintain the jacks withtheir lower Yends projecting outwardly.

The needle cylinder has secured thereto the usual gear 2@ which isdriven through an idler by the driving gear 5E) controlled by suitablemechanism of the usual type to provide both rotation and reciprocation.The gear` Z'is mounted in the portion 22 oi the frame.

To provide a support for various elements of the mechanism thereisprovided a platform 24 which is supported fronirthe lower portion 22oi the frame by suitable posts. A bracket 2d supported by vtheplatform/26 carries a shaft 28 upon which the latchring supportingbracket 3] is pivoted, this bracket carrying a latch ring 32. Thesupporting bracket has pivoted to its forward portion a hookv 3d,engageable with a pin 35 carried by an upstanding bracket 38 to maintainthe latch ring in its lowered position. Manipulation of the hook 34 willrelease the hook from the pin 36 whereby the latch ring may be raised inthe usual manner, a suitable spring being provided 5 to counterbalanceits weight andtend to hold it open. The usual cam ring 46 containing thecams for controlling the sinkers is provided, the cam ring having theusual freedom for oscillatory movements limited by engagement of stopswith 10 the post 38.

A bracket i2 pivoted on the shaft 28 is provided at itsV forward endwith a downwardly extending portion dal providedwith openings throughwhich project headed screws 45 designed to thread intor15 the latch ringsupporting bracket 3G. A spring ill counterbalances the weight ofthebracket 42 so that this bracket will tend to remain in the positionillustrated in Fig. l except when held down by the screws 4B. Whensecured by these 20 scre'ws'toV the latch `ring support', however, thelatch ring andthe bracket 42 may be raised as a unit by freeing the hook34`from the pin 36. As will be hereafter pointed out, with the bracketraised and the latch ring alonedovvn in its'oper- 25V ative position,plain knitting may be produced whereas when the bracket i2 and the partswhich it carries are also down in their operative position wrapping ofneedles'will take place with Vthe formation of designs.

The shaft d3, which carries the gear 50 adapted to drive through anintermediate idler the ring gear 2Q, projects upwardly and carries atits upper end a gear 52 meshing with a pinion 54, the shaft of which hasa universal connection with one element 5% of a split shaft to whichelement the other element t is splined by the use of a key and slotconnection. The upper element 58 has a universal connection with theshaft carrying a gear d@ and journalled in the bracket 42. The gear 6dmeshes with a gear 62 which is attached to the wrap finger supportingassembly indicated generally at Sli.

The assembly @it includes a plate E6 provided with supporting pins 58upon which bobbins 10 45 maybe mounted. Above these bobbins 'I0 there isa plate lll which formsa sheet for the support of tubes l2, the platelll having openings therein through which the tubes extend, being heldin position by clamping nuts. As illustrated most clearly in 3 each ofthese tubes carries at its outer end a spring tension member 'I6 theupper arm of which bears against the top of the tube to tension a yarnpassing between it and the tube. Extending downwardly through the membertit are thread guiding tubes 'i8 which, as illustrated'in Fig. 9,project below the assembly to guide yarns to eyes in wrap fingers 80.These wrap iingers are carried by ahead forming the lower portion of theassembly and consisting of a @c preferably single member providingcylinders 82 and d3 having aligned vertical slots therein, there beingbetween these cylinders a groove having a semi-circular radial crosssection to receive semicircular projections t@ of the wrap fingers andG5 thereby provide a pivot for the same. The wrap ngers are held withinthe slots in 82 and 33 by means or" a spring band 88. Y

The 'yarns from the bobbins l5 extend upwardly through the openings inthe tubes 14 thence under the springs '56 whereby they are tensioned,and then downwardly .through the tubes it and finally through the eyesof the wrap fingers. The lower ends of the wrap fingers are twistedinthe usual fashion so that as the wrap linger moves outwardly throughthe needle circle it passes to one side of the needle with which it isto cooperate by reason of the cam action of the hook of the needle onits end, and then on its return passes to the other side of that needle,again due to the camming action of the hook of the needle thereon.

The wrap iin-gers are provided at their upper ends with butts @iloccupying in the present Inachine either of two positions, the butts inthe upper position being acted upon by cam di while those in the lowerposition are acted upon by cam Se, these cams being pivoted upon avertical pin 9S and being urged away from the butts of wrap fingers bysprings gli, the limiting position being determined by a suitable stop.The diiferent butts Se on the wraplingers are-provided to secure apossibility of greater pattern variations, since by control of cams E12and @il lingers be selectively rendered active or inactive as desiredindependently of the selective raising of needles. A greater number ofbutts with a corresponding number of cams of the type of $2 or ed may oicourse be provided as illustrated in ny application Serial No. 469,956,led July i9, i930,

To control the action of the earns S2 and Qd these earns are providedwith projections adapted to be engaged respectively by earn levers itand ltd pivoted at lili, and adapted to be acted upon by vertical leverslull and l l@ respectively. Springs l lb tend to hold these levers itiland ilil in position so that they will act the projections Hilti tomaintain the cains nd in condition to act upon the butts S@ and therebyswing the lower ends of the wrap lingers outwardly. Reverse movement ofthe Wrap 1ingers to carry the lower ends inwardly of the needle circleare effected by the action thereon of the active edge H3 of a cam lll atpeints below their pivots 36.

The levers lilll and il@ are pivoted at ill to the vertical post l'l andare acted upon at their lower ends by levers lill and lili, the formeror' which is carried by a vertically extending tube l i8 journalleu inthe frame of the machine while the latter is carried by a shaft l2@journalled within the tube l l. Thel tube l i8 at its lower end isprovided with a earn following lever il? arranged to be acted upon by acani i2@ carried by the cam drum i225 while the shaft carries a lever ldadapted to be acted upon by a E25 carried by the saine drum. When thelevers l22 and lil are swung outwardly by their respec tive cams H23 andE25 they cause the levers it?, and il@ to rnove the levers i632 and it@the action of springs M and thus cause to disengage their respectiveearns di and "wie action of the springs M5 on the other hand wll causethe cams 92 and Se to move inwardly act upon the butts Sii. As will beclear from Fig. 2 the cams @fr and 952 are carried by the bracket l2 sothat when the saine is lifted they rise therewith.

The bracket il is steadied in its active position by engagement of atapered opening in an extension i3d thereof upon a tapered pinprojecting from the upper end of the post lill. A.

leaf spring l carried by the projection i.'l

provided with an opening arranged to engage over a pin i3d carried bythe post lill! thus formm ing a releasable latch to hold the bracket inits lowered position prior to the engagement of screws llt.

Referring now to Fig. 17 the layout of the carns for operating upon thebutts of the needles and jacks will be briefly described. Inasmuch asonly one feed point is provided, there is a single set of stitch cams atthe feed point. These earns include the upper center carn 36, the lowercenter cam 38, stitch cams Mil and lili?, and end canis 5 lll and 453,together with the usual cams associated therewith to properly move theneedles for the formation of stitches. The cains ldd and l 112 aremounted upon slides of the usual type (not shown) so that leveling ofthe needles rnay be effected. To provide for the formation of gussettoes, earns idd, ille and lili? are pro-vided on one side of the feedpoint while caries and le? are provided on the other side or ne feedpoint. Cams hill and MS are supported together on a single carryingmember, cani idd being adapted to engage long butts only while cani isadapted to enea-ge both medium and long butts oi' needles as will belater discussed. Between the Canis M4 and Ult is a passage M5 for needlebutts 20 which is provided for a purpose which will be hereafter madeclear. The cam itil is adapted to raise only long butt needles while itmisses short and medium butt needles. These Gains are rnc-vable and outin a manner which will be here- 25 after described. .The earns ill andlei! function not only in the production of gussets but also perform thefunctions of the switch cani or earns usually provided. The end canilf3-i is spaced a somewhat unusual distance irorn the stitch cazn Ullileaving a space i5@ through which move at a low level. This is to aoco4vnod-.ate the double sole yarn cutting and clamp ig mechanism which,when in action, projects over the needle circle.

A lowering picker ill and raising piV and 52 all of conventional typeare Below the various cams just described is a continuous ring of caresle@ which, as trated in Fig. i6, serve to hold the inte jacks lil withinthe slots of the needle circl upper surface of the cams forming providethe usual end cams lei and im needle butts. There is also provided asurface 252 on the lower portion of the ring it@ to act upon the buttsi?? of the int jacks lll, this cani surface li: bearing to the othercams the relationship illustrated inl Figs. 17 and 20.

rlhe angular relationship between the needle cams and the cams foroperating upon the wrap lingers is illustrated in Figs. 1'? and 20, theelements ed and M2 heretofore described having their active portionsindicated therein.

A is adapted to act upon the shoulders I8 of the lower jacks ifi. Theactive surface of the earn itil is illustrated which represents theheight ito which the shoulders i3 are raised thereby. A beveled upperprojection E68 on this ca-:n serves to rnove the lower ends of the lowerjacks inwardly thereby releasing the shoulders i3 from the cani afterthe jacks have been raised to the highest position for cooperation withthe wrap fingers. Those jacks which have had their lower ends previouslymoved inwardly are not engaged by earns i653, as will be apparenthereafter. The others ride up ZiS and then itil to i 2 and Mill beinginade separate for adjustment purposes as will be later discussed. Asafety il is provided to prevent overrun of those jacks which aredepressed by the cam itil, this cam serving to hold the jacks inposition for later engage fit the carn ll4 which is provided with anindependently sloping upper surface llt designed to engage the shoulders|8 and align the jacks so that the butts I6 thereon will cooperateproperly with the various ngers |88 and |82.

A safety bevel |18 prevents breaking of butts by cam 2 i8 duringreciprocation. A suitable cam, not shown, holds the lower ends of thejacks inwardly until they are rocked by cam |18 which serves to rock thelower ends of the jacks outwardly prior to operation of lingers |88thereon, (see Fig. 16).

Referring now to Fig. it will be noted that the camsY |44 and |46 arecarried by a lever |84 piv- Voted to the frame at |86 and having itsinward movement limited by a suitable set screw adapted to engage afixed part of the machine. The lever |84 carries a pin |88 engagingwithin a fork formed in a bell crank lever |68 pivoted to 'the frame at|8|. A spring |88 tends to urge the lever |98 in a counterclockwisedirection. A link |82 connects an arm of the lever |88 with a lever |94which is carried by one, |86, of a set of hollow nested shafts mountedin vertical bearings and in each other in the frame. The lower end ofthe shaft |86 carries a lever |88 which is adapted to be acted upon bysuitable earns 288 carried by the cam drum |26.

The cam |58, the position of which is most clearly shown in Figs. 17 and20, is carried by a plunger 282, (Fig. 5), while the cam |52 issimilarly carried by a plunger 284. These plungers which are slidableradially in a frame extension and prevented from turning are normallyurged outwardly by suitable springs (not shown). Cams 286 and 288respectively, best shown in Fig. 2, act upon the plungers 282 and 284 tomove the same inwardly at proper times. These cams are carried at theupper end of the posts secured to a head 2|8 normally urged downwardlyby a spring 2|2 to bring an extension 2|4 which it carries in engagementeither with the surface of the main cam disc or in contact with suitablecams 2|6 thereon. The cams 286 and 268 are vertically adjustable ontheir supporting posts Vso that the timing of the cams |58 and |52 intheir inward and outward movements may be readily adjusted.

As will be seen from Figs. 7 and 7a, the cam |54 is supported by a block2|8 being adjustable relatively thereto by the provision of suitableadjusting screws 228. The block 2|8 is carried by a slide 222 radiallyadjustable in the lower bracket ofthe frame, fixation of the slide inadjusted position being effected by the clamping engagement therewith ofa screw passing through an elongated slot in the slide into the bracket.

The cam |18, the active portion of which is indicated in Figs. 17 and20, is in the form of a lever pivoted upon a fixed Vertical post 223.The arm of the lever |18 opposite its active end is adjustably securedby means of a clamping screw 224 to an arm 226 through which is threadedan adjustable set screw 228 designed to bear upon the hub of the lever|18. By reason of the fact that 224 is a clamping screw the lever 226forms van extension of the lever 228 so that in effeet there is a singlelever engaged by the link 238. The arrangement just described is for thepurpose of providing a relatively fine adjustment of the inward radialposition of the active end of the lever |18. By freeing the clampingscrew 224 the arm 226 may be pivoted thereabout relatively to the lever|18 until the set screw 228, in

properly adjusted position, abuts the hub of |18.

When such proper position is obtained the clamping screw 224 istightened. A suitable spring 23| urges the lever |18 ina clockwisedirection. To oppose this and bringv the active end of the lever |18 inposition to engage the jacks |4, the link 238 is connected between 226and the arm 232 carried by one, 234, of the Vseries of nested 5 sleevespreviously referred to, the lower end of this sleeve 234 carrying a camVfollowing arm 236 designedrto be'engaged by cams 238 upon the cam drum|26.-

As has been already indicated, there is provided a stack of cam iingers|80 and |82, the lowermost being designated by the last number inasmuchas it has different functions and connections from the others. Thisiinger is connected by a link 248 to an arm 242 of another tubularsleeve of the nest heretofore described which carries at its lower end acam following lever 244 arranged to be acted upon by a cam 246 on themain cam drum |26. Y

Springs 248 surrounding an upright iixed shaft have their ends securedto the various cams |88 to the left of their pivot 223, as viewed inFig. 6, thus normally urging these cams to bring their active endsinwardly for engagement with the butts I6 of the jacks I4. The variouscams |88 25 are provided with projections engageable with the butts oftricks carried by a trick wheel 258 which is of conventional typecontaining tricks provided with butts which may be Yselectively brokenaway in accordance with the desired patterning to be obtained. The trickwheel 258 is provided with a series of ratchet teeth 252 which, with oneexception, 254, extend'radially outwardly to a full extent. Theexception, the tooth 254,

does not extend outwardly as far as the others for V a reason which willbe made clear in the description of the operation. Adapted to act uponthe ratchet teeth 252 and 254 is a pawl 256 urged inwardly by a suitablespringv 251 and carried by a lever 258 connected by a link 268 to theupwardly 40 extending arm of a bell crank 282, the other arm or" whichis engageable with lugs 264 formed on a pattern chain 266 which istrained about a sprocket 268 moved step by step in the conventionalfashion by engagement with a ratchet secured thereto of an oscillatingpawl 216 which is adapted to receive one oscillation upon each rotationof the needle cylinder.V A guard 212 is pivoted upon the shaft of thetrick wheel 258. Y This guard takes the form of a plate having its outeredgeV formed in a series of stepsr214, 216 and 218. If the step 214 isbrought opposite the range of the active end of the pawl 256 then thepawl is free to engage all of the teeth including the tooth 254 so thatits reciprocation will impart a step by step movement to the trickwheel. If on the other hand the step 254 is brought opposite the rangeof movement of the free end of the pawl the pawl is held outwardly sothat while it will engage the full size teeth 252 it will fail to engagethe shorter tooth 254. Accordingly if this step 216 is brought intocooperation with the ratchet so long as the ratchet is activethe trickwheel will be stepped around until the tooth 254 becomes the next one tobe engaged by the ratchet. When this occurs the ratchetV willreciprocate idly while the trick wheel will rest in lixed position. Whenthe outermost step 218 is nected by a link 284 to an arm 286 carried byV the outermost of the nested tubular sleeves which carries at its lowerend an arm 288 arranged for engagement with a cam 29@ properly formed tolocate the guard plate 212 in its various required positions.

It will be noted that the projections on the cams I8@ which are engagedby the butts on the trick wheel are located to the left of the post 223as viewed in Fig. 6. Accordingly the presence of -a butt in engagementwith any of these cams I will result in the outward movement of itsactive end causing it to fail to engage a corresponding butt l@ of ajack tl. It is desired not only to secure such outward movement of theactive ends of the fingers it@ by the butts on the trick wheel but alsoby other means so that a greater variety of patterns may be btained. Tothis end there are provided three levers 262, 2555i and 29% pivotedvertically above each other upon an upright post and urged in aclockwise direction as viewed in plan by individual springs 298. Each ofthese levers is provided with a projection of considerable verticalextent designed to engage the tails of a plurality of the cams E863. Itmay be pointed out that the projection of the lever 2% does not engagethe cam H32 although it may engage a plurality of the cams i3d locatedimmediately thereabove. While three of these levers are illustrated, itwill be obvious that more or less may be provided as desired.

The levers 292, 294 and 29e are connected by links 3d@ to arms 302, 3Mand 3931i respectively, secured to three of the nested shafts formingthe group above mentioned. The lower ends of these respective shaftscarry arms 3%, Si@ and 312 engaging cams 311i, tl@ and 393 carried bythe pattern drum l 2e. By the actuation through the medium of these camsof the various levers 292, '29d and 2%, the corresponding groups ofvarious cams it@ may be caused to fail to engage the butts l@ of thejacks ifi irrespective of set-up of the trick wheel 25S.

Referring now to Figs. l1 to 15 inclusive the yarn changing and fee-dingarrangements will be described. The main yarn feeding, cutting andclamping devices which are of a type designed to prevent interference ofthe main yarns and the cutting and clamping thereof with the wrap yarnsare similar to those described and claimed in the application of HaroldE. Houseman, Serial No. 529,519, filed April ll, 1931 .and will not beherein described in detail except to the extent to which modification ismade to secure a proper cooperation with the double sole yarn feeding,clamping and cutting mechanism. Referring more particularly to Fig. 13it will be noted that two yarn feeding fingers 320 and Sf are providedbeing pivoted about a pin 334 and arranged to be raised and lowered bydevices of the general type disclosed in the Houseman application. Theformer of the ngers may be provided with Ia plurality of eyes so that acorresponding plurality of yarns may be fed to the needles in platingrelationship. A hook S24 and a presser 3253 cooperate to carry the yarnsfrom the ngers initially across the circle of needles so as to be seizedthereby at the times when yarn changes take place. A xed blade 323cooperates with a movable blade 33%) to out the main yarn while a clamp332 in the form of a exible plate bearing against the movable blade 33userves to clamp the main yarns after severing takes place coincidentlywith their removal from action. All of the parts just described are morethoroughly detailed with respect to their formations, arrangements, andoperating connections in the application of Harold E. Houseman justreferred to.

Pivoted on the xed shaft 334 is the double 5 sole yarn feeding finger336 which is adjacent the main yarn fingers Si@ and 322 and is providedwith `an extension 333 engaged by the upper end of a lever 346 whichcarries a cam following roller 362 engageable during rotation of theneedle cylinder by a cam 3M carried by the rotating sinker dial. Theengagement of the roller by the cam 3M serves to raise the nger out ofaction when those needles which knit the instep are passing the feedpoint. A suitable spring shown in Fig. 4 at 343 normally urges thedouble sole yarn finger down into active position.

During the formation of those parts of the stocking which do not involvedouble sole yarn, it is necessary to keep the double sole yarn finger upin its inactive position irrespective of the continuous rotation of cam3M. For this purpose the inner end of a lever 3% underlies the nger 336,the lever 3136 carrying an adjustable abutment screw 348 engaged by theupper end of a plunger 35u which extends downwardly through the frame ofthe machine as illustrated in Fig. 4 and engages suitable cams on themain cam disc.

Inasmuch as the double sole yarn must be cut and clamped during eachrevolution of the needle cylinder, it is obvious that the main cuttingand clamping mechanism will not suice for the proper action upon thedouble sole yarn. Ac-

ver 352 with an arm 3G@ carried by the solid 45- innermost shaft 362 ofthe nested series, which shaft at its lower end is provided with a camfollowing arm 36d designed to engage a suitable cam 366 on the drum E26.Secured at the inner end of the lever 352 is the bracket 368 on which ispivoted about a horizontal pivot fili@ a bell crank 372 carrying at itsinner end a cam follower 374 engageable by cams 3W and 31% secured tothe sinker dial so as to rotate therewith during rotation of the needlecylinder. An adjustable pad 38@ secured in the upper end of the bellcrank 312 is arranged to engage means for controlling the clamping andcutting mechanism so that the same is operated upon each revolution ofthe needle cylinder.

A fixed post 352 carried by the bracket dtd has pivoted thereon a hub33d of a supporting bracket which is urged by a spring 335i in aceunterclockwise direction as viewed in plan to bring an adjustable stopscrew te@ carried thereby into engagement with a post 392 secured to Theclamping and cutting arrangement which is most clearly illustrated inFigs. 1l and 12 comprises three fixed blades 39d, 3535i and 393. Betweenthe blades 39A'. and 395 there is ar- 70 ranged to reciprocate aclamping blade tit@ which has an inner end of L-formation so as to hookand engage the double sole yarn feeding from the finger 336. Between theblades 396 and Se@ there is a knife blade 402 cooperating with onestitch formation by the 40 of the'x'ed blades which acts as a ledgerblade to sever the yarn. The blade @t2 is'also of L- formation at itsinner end. The blades 405i and 4t2 which are mounted for slidingmovement together are provided with butts dell at their outer endsengageable within a slot in a slide t6 which is urged outwardly by aspring liti@ to Vbring its outer end im into engagement with the pad38d. The spring tlg by moving the blades All@ and @t2 outwardly tends tocut and clamp the double sole yarn. On the other hand, inward move-Vnient of the pad t8@ by reason of action of cams 3l@ and Slt upon thefollower 374 will release the yarn and move the blades to theiropenpositions. As will be pointed out hereafter, one oi the movementseffected by the cam 3l@ is an idle one since the double sole yarn is notthen eno gaged by its cutting and clamping elements. The light spring H2is provided to hold the pad 38d in engagement with the end il@ of theslide to maintain thesame under control. This spring,

however, is lighter than the spring fit?) and does not prevent thespring its from urgingthe slide outwardly.

It is very important that the double sole yarn be so controlled when itis not being knitted that it cannot be engaged by any of the needles. Toprevent an accidental engagement of any loose loop lthereof by theneedles there is provided in the inner face of the latch ring a slopingundercut slotgllil of the type illustrated in Figs. l2,

i3 and 14, in which the double sole yarn will lie when the lngerV 33t israised out of action and the end of the double sole yarn is clamped inthe cutting and clamping means. Instead of providing an undercut such asMil, which is of relatively limited depth, a double sole yarn receivingslot maybe provided as illustrated in Fig. l5 at fil@ by the use of aseparate plate H8 secured to the inner surface of the latch ring insidean undercut portion thereof. This plate is or" course designed to form asmooth continuation of the inner surface of the latch ring and in effectforms a partV of it. It is made separate only for convenience ofconstruction of the deep slot.

In order to further insure that the double sole yarn cannot throw out aloop engageable by the needles at undesired times, there is provided atensioning and takeup mechanism of the'type illustrated in Figs. 4, 5,18 and 19. This cornprises a lever d2@ secured to the shaft 3552 which,as previously noted, carries the lever 36) arranged to impart movementsto the arm 352. A pin W2 extending upwardly from the arm 1320 isarranged to engage the lower portion of a tension disc F225. so as tomove the same away from a iixed disc l carried by a xed portion of theframe 28 when the lever lili rocks in a clockwise direction as viewed inplan. When the pin @22 does not engage the disc d2@ this disc is pressedtoward the fixed disc 1325 by a spiral spring 53@ surrounding ahorizontally extending post on which is threaded a nut 232 which may beadjusted inwardly and outwardly to regulate the tension on the spring.The double sole yarn passes from the supply through an eye 431i, betweenthe discs 424 and 626, thence through an eye e36, an eye Mtl carried bythe arm 11120, and another Xed eye 3353, and to the nger The eye lll-Elmoves between the two iixed eyes 1335 and 53S to provide a takeupserving to take up slack in the double sole yarn when the arm 42E) movescounterclockwise as viewed in plan. By

Vthe arrangement just described it will be seen that as the cutting andclamping devices move outwardly by reason of counterclockwiseoscillationof the arm 352 the pin 42.2 is caused to Y disengage the disc424 whereupon the tension of spring 43@ comes into action to yieldinglyclamp the double sole yarn. VAt the same time the take- 5 and 326, thetension imparted by the spring 430 being relatively light.

The various parts of the machine having been described there will now betaken Vup the operations involved in the production of a stocking. Theneedles which have heretofore Vbeen designated broadly by the numeralElconsist of three series arranged as indicated in Fig. 2e. The completeset of needles consists of short buttv needles da, intermediate buttneedles eb, and 2O longbutt needles 6c. The short butt needles extendthrough while the long and intermediate butt needles form the ,remainderof the circle being arranged as indicated with a series of intermediatebutt needles forming the central portion ofY the semicircle, whichneedles are adapted to knit'the tip of the toe, sets of long buttneedles flanking Vthis central intermediate butt series, which long buttneedles are adapted to form the gussets in the toe, and thenintermediate butt needles between the gusset needles and the ends of theshort butt series. The short butt needles are adapted to knit the frontof the leg and top of the foot while the long and intermediate buttseries knitV the back of the leg, the high splice, heel, sole and toe. VThe stocking which the machine is adapted to produce comprises a ribbedtop, produced as usual on a rib machine and Vtransferred to the Y,needles of the present machine. VAdjacent this 40 ribbed top is anextended top consisting of a plurality of circularly knit courses.Following this is the leg in which patterns are produced in the presentmachine by wrapping, the patterns extending through the leg, the ankleand the 45 instep and terminating at the rear of the ankle at the top ofthe heel, the patterns preferably Vcontinuing through the high splice,although, if

desired they may terminate there. The ankle ofthe stocking formed onthis machine is cir- 50 cularly knit, the high splice beingdistinguished from the remainder of the ankle by the inclusion of theyarn which has already been referred to as a double sole yarn. A heel isformed by the usual narrowing and widening operation, being, 55 asstatedabove, formed on the long and intermediate butt needles. The foot of thestocking ls formed by rotaryknitting in a fashion similar to theformation of the ankle, the bottom of the foot being reinforced by theinclusion of 60 the double sole yarn. At the completion of knitting ofthe Vfoot, the advanced toe .is knit by rotary knitting. The toe whichis formed on the long andintermediate butt needles is produced byflrstjnarrowing, removing needles Vsuceussively from action, theninserting all of the long butt needles, knitting a gussetcn theseneedles while continuing the narrowing operation, throwingout ofoperation all of the long butt needles asa unit, and then widening. Thestocking is then nished by the` production of the loopers rounds byrotary knitting. Following this, the needles are levelled, the latchring is lifted, and several turns given to the needle cylinder to pressthe loops off theneedle's. One ringer, 322, 75

remains in active position at the end of the operation, rising, ofcourse, with the latch ring. The leg and instep portions of the stockingmay, if desired, be formed of a plurality of yarns in platedrelationship.

When the machine is in its stationary condition the needles are leveledto receive the ribbed top. At this time the yarn ngers 320 and 336 areraised out of action, linger 322 being in action ready to knit theextended top, while cams Mii, |42, Mii, it, M8 and |52 are withdrawnfrom action so that all of the needles form a complete circle at apredetermined level. At this time the cam surface El@ of the guard plate2'i2 engages the operating extremity of the pawl 256 whereby in spite ofany movements of the pawl 256 no rotation will be imparted to the trickwheel 25e since the low tooth 25d will be opposite the pawl having beenbrought into this position during the finishing of a previously formedstocking. The cams 52 and are withdrawn by the action of the controllingcams on the main cam drum so that they will not engage the wrap fingersthereby avoiding movements of the wrap iingers during the initialformation of the extended top. The upper sole yarn rests within theguarding slot dit, the clamping and cutting mechanism for this yarnbeing withdrawn by the maintenance of lever 352 in a counterclockwisedirection as viewed in plan while at the same time the double sole yarnis prevented from throwing out any loop by the combined action of thetensioning and takeup mechanisms of Figs. 18 and 19.

Following the placing of the ribbed top upon the leveled needles thelatch ring and wrap finger head are lowered and the machine set inoperation to form the extended top, the needle cylinder rotatingcountercloclwise as viewed in plan.

The extended top is knit from a yarn fed through nger 322, beinginitially laid across the needles by hand. The cams l and M2 are putinto action in the usual fashion dropping in against needles of theshort butt series so that intermediate butt needles are the first tofollow the knitting wave to produce stitches. The remaining parts occupythe positions already indicated. During the knitting of the extended topwhich consists of a plurality of rounds in the usual fashion, the pawl25e will reciprocate idly due to the action of the lugs its of thepattern chain upon the follower lever 262. Inasmuch as the cams Si? areat this time preferably out of action the various jacks whose lower endshappen to project outwardly will ride up the cam |66 to the wrappingposition. No wrapping takes place, however, in View of the fact that thewrap iingers are maintained in their inner position by reason of theinactivity of the cams 92 and ed. Cam |78, which is active only whenpatterning is being effected, is also out of action. As a result themajority of the lowe jacks will remain with their lower ends in innerpositions, the spring band being generally not sufliciently strong tomove the jacks which iit in the slots with considerable friction.

Following the formation of the extended top a yarn change taires placeby the replacement of finger 322 by linger which contains one or moreyarns of the desired character to form the leg. The cams 92 and 5Fl forcontrolling the action of the wrap yarn ngers are now permitted to comeselectively into action to act upon the butts of the wrap fingers. Thebutts are set up in a predetermined fashion toI secure the desiredpatterning in connection with the needle selecting setup. Thearrangement of the present machine is such that there may be provided awrap fingerY for each needle so that, if desired, all of the needles maybe wrapped with the resultant production of quite elaborate designs.

During the formation of the leg the cams |85 5 which are arranged 'tooperate upon the butts of the lower jacks are permitted to come intoaction under selective release by the cams 292, 294 and 2%. The camsEQ2, 294i and 39S are selectively under the control of the correspondingcams on 1o the pattern drum so that by several steps of the pattern drumduring the formation of the leg, and of course the ankle and foot,control may be obtained from upper, intermediate or lower sets of cams36 with the result that a longitudinal 15 change of wrap pattern may beproduced. For example, two sets of cams |36 may be in operationthroughout the formation of the upper part of the leg to producevertical stripes. If, then, a clock design is to be produced beginninghalfway 20 down the leg, one set of cams may be taken out of action andthe third set may come into action to control the designing for theformation of such clock. It may be noted that the operation of thesecams is in a sense negative, that is, a 25 jack whose lower end ispressed in by a cam |80 will fail to take a wrap yarn inasmuch as itwill fail to ride up the cam |56 to receive the yarn from itscorresponding yarn finger as the finger is rocked outwardly and theninwardly by the cams 30 i 92 or 94 and H2. The layout of the trick wheelis of a character to produce patterns in view of this negative type ofoperation; and it also follows that the more elaborate patterns areproduced when less of the cams remain in opera- 35T tion.

After wrapping takes place on those needles which are raised by theaction of cams 2|8 and it@ on the lower jacks the lower and intermediatejacks are lowered by cam i t2 while the needles 40' are lowered by theupper guard cam to pass through the knitting wave with unwrappedneedles.

At the beginning of the formation of the leg the guard plate 2M is movedso that the low portion 45" Elli thereof is brought opposite the path ofreciprocation of the pawl 255. The pawl is thereby rendered active tostep the trick wheel around in the manner determined by the chain 256.

When the position for the beginning of the high splice is reached thedrum |25 is given a step to effect various new operations, the needlecylinder still rotating in the same fashion as before. First, it may notbe desirable that wrapping should take place through the high splicewhile on the other hand wrapping must continue through the front of theankle from the leg into the instep. In such case, those lower jacks lliwhich are associated with sole needles (which of course form the highsplice) are provided with butts arranged for engagement by the cam |32which is now brought into action and maintained in action during theformation of the high splice. By reason of this the various sole needlesare not raised by the action of cams 2|8 65 and |54 upon their lowerjacks and accordingly they will fail to move upwardly to take yarns fromthe wrap fingers. The wrap fingers associated with the sole needlescontinue to move across the needle circle as determined by cams 92 70and 94, although, if the design is such as not to be detrimentallyaiected thereby, this may be prevented by the removal of one cam, say94, from action whereby only the wrap fingers associated with the instepneedles are moved in their 75.

yarn laying paths by the cam which remains :in action, the lower butts@il in such case being omitted from all the fingers associated with soleneedles. Y

If wrapping is to take place through the high splice, the cam E82 iskept out of action till knitting of the sole starts. Since formation ofthe high splice takes place by rotary knitting, wrapping will, in thiscase, take place as before.

The knitting cams retain their previous positions so that the main yarnor yarns are knit in the same fashion as before. Besides these yarnsthere is now introduced the double sole yarn which will be knit by thesole needles only, being cut and clamped afteriinishing the feeding ofthe sole needles upon each revolution of the needle cylinder. To securean activityrofV the nger 3136 which-carries the double sole yarn andwhich must be moved down into action to cut the double sole yarn intothe circle of needles in advance of the rst of the sole needles andwhich must be withdrawn following the passage of the last of the soleneedles, the yarn is permitted to drop by the riding of plunger 35d offa cam on the main cam disc which has, up to this point, maintained thelever Se@ and the finger 33t raised. The finger is now subject to theaction of the follower lever Still which is rocked upon each revolutionof the machine by the cam 3M carried by the sinker dial as illustratedin Fig. a. This cam is -so located that by its action it will raise thefinger 336 to prevent feed of the yarn therefrom to the instep needlesbut will permit the nger 33t to drop at the proper time to cause afeeding -of the double sole yarn to the sole needles, the

yarn being cut in between the last of the instep needles and the rst ofthe sole needles and being removed after feeding the last of the soleneedles and before it has an opportunity to feed the advancing instepneedle. Preferably, there Yis proper provision for cutting and clampingthe double sole yarn during such operations. Accordingly the arm 352which carries the double sole cutting and clamping mechanism is swungclockwise with a simultaneous release of the tension upon the doublesole yarn. The timing of the cutting and clamping vmechanism is suchthat Vimmediately after the finger 335 is dropped into action and thefirst sole needle fed, the clamp VTwill release the end of the doublesole yarn so that it may move about with the needle cylinder. As thefinger 33t is raised out of action the yarn Ywill be drawn into YtheYjaws of the cutting and clamping mechanism which will be thereupon'actuated by the spring fide following the timed release of the followerElfi bythe cam Slt so that the double sole yarn is cut and its end heldby the clamping jaws whilethe raising of the finger 33% draws it intoposition above the needles to prevent its seizure by any of the instepneedles.

The clamping and cutting Vmechanism SSL-m2V projects across the needlesat the position correspondingto tot?, Fig. 17.V It may be pointed outthat while two cams 376 and 3l@ are provided,

these cams in effect act as a single cam,'the sep- VThe idle movementsof the cutting and V,clamping mechanism resulting from thisarrangement'produce'no result. The yielding mounting of the Icutting andclamping mechanism is to prevent damage to the machine incase a highneedle should accidentally come along and'engage the cutting andclamping devices. The mounting is such that the cutting and clampingdevices may swing against the tension of the spring 338 if an accidentof this sort should occur.

.During the formation of the high splice the trick wheel 25! continuesto step about in the usual fashion since the pattern is being continuedleast through the instep. The double sole yarn does not interfere withwrapping through the high 'splice if this is desired.

After the completion of the high splice, the double sole yarn feedingfinger is rendered inactive by being lifted by lever 346.Simultaneously, the double sole yarn clamp and cutter is withdrawnoutwardly by rocking of shaft 352 which simultaneously causes thetension 42e and takeup 134) to become effective to clamp and draw theyarn taut. Since the nger 33t is now fully raised, the yarn is drawnbetween the retracted clamp and the finger into the slot M4 whereit willnot be engaged by the needles.

The heel `of the stocking is produced by narrowing and widening in theusual fashion,A while the sole needles do not knit. VUp to the time ofthe formation of the heel the instep and sole needles, or the instepneedles alone, depending on the conditions mentioned above, have beencarrying the wrap pattern which is to be continued in the instep afterthe heel is completed and during the rotary knitting of the foot. Inorder to insure that the wrap pattern will continue without interruptiontheguard plate 2l2 is now moved to bring the high portion 278 intoengagement with the pawl 255 Ypreventing it fromV acting upon any of theratchet teeth. Accordingly the pawl 256 will reciprocateA idly while ithe trick wheel 2553 will maintain its position loY of the heel at whichlevel they would normallyV and and cam H8 is also withdrawn toY avoidengagement with the jacks during'reciprocation.

Upon the last counterclockwise movement of' the needle cylinder prior tothe first clockwise reciprocation the short butt needles are taken outof action while the long and intermediate butt needles, except for theleading one of `the series, remain in position to pass through theknitting wave to take the heel yarn which is lowered into actionsimultaneously with removalV of the leg yarn, the heel yarn in thepresent machine being the same yarn which is used for the formation oftheextended top. To secure the removal ofthe short butt needles fromaction the combined cam ille-M5 is given an inward movement so thatV thecam illi will engage long and intermediate butt needles. The cam |52 isgiven a full movement inwardly while the caml iil at the same time movesoutwardly. TheA lowering `picker is in an inactive position between theactive and inactive levels of the butts. The positioning of thecams asjust Vdescribed results in a depression of the long and intermediate`butt lneedles by the cam M6 following their ele-- vation by the upwardprojection HSI of the cam' ring |613. The long and intermediate buttneedles are thus lowered to a level below the lowermost extremity of cam52 and they will accordingly pass upwardly over the cams |42 and |63 andbelow the center and stitch cams |36 and |40 to form stitches. The shortbutt needles on the other hand riding over the projection I6! will notbe engaged by the cam |46 and will accordingly move on a higher level soas to be engaged by cam |52 whereby they are lifted above all of thecams at the main feed and thereafter during the formation of the heelremain at the inactive upper level. The leading sole needle will fail topass through the knitting wave upon the initial clockwise movement inthe formation of the heel since it will engage the raising picker |58and be carried thereby to the inactive level. Upon each reciprocationthe advancing needles of the sole series will engage a raising picker sothat these needles are raised one by one out of action t-o effectnarrowing. Immediately following the counterclockwise reciprocation inwhich the cam |52 raises the short butt needles, the cam |52 and alsothe cams |44 and |46 are withdrawn to inactive positions the same ascams |50 and |48. All of the sole needles therefore c-ontinue to knitexcept as they are raised by the picker.

Following the completion of the narrowing operation the lowering picker|54 is brought into action to lower two needles at a time while theraising pickers remain active to raise them one at a time. The wideningaction for the heel thus takes place, the various other parts maintaining their previous positions.

Rotation of the needle cylinder is now resumed for the knitting of thefoot. All of the needles including the instep needles and any soleneedles which may remain in raised position are brought down into actionby the inward movement of the cam |50. The other parts then take thepositions which they had assumed during the formation of the highsplice; that is, the plate 212 is moved to bring the low portion 214opposite the pawl 256 which again becomes active to step the trick wheelaround, cam 92 again becomes active to move the wrap fingers associatedwith instep needles, and the double sole yarn feeding iinger andclamping and cutting mechanism again becomes eiective to cause thedouble sole yarn to be knitted by the sole needles, the main yarn beingchanged to bring the previous leg yarn or yarns into action. Cams |18and |80 are again rendered active.

Following the completion of the sole the advanced toe is knitted, theextended top yarn again replacing the leg yarn by the lowering of finger322 and the simultaneous raising of the finger 320. The double sole yarnis withdrawn as before into the slot 4|4. At this time both cams 92 and94 are withdrawn from action to stop wrapping. The guard plate 212 ismoved to bring the intermediate surface 216 opposite the path ofreciprocation of the pawl 256. Accordingly, the trick wheel 250 willcontinue to step around under the action of the pawl until thev lowratchet tooth 254 comes opposite the pawl whereupon the movements of thetrick wheel will stop while the pawl will continue to reciprocate idly.This position may not be attained during the knitting of the advancedtoe but will be attained sometime prior to the finishing of the stockingso that the trick wheel is brought into proper initial position for theformation of designs in the next stocking to be knit.

Cams |18, |80 and |82 are now again taken out gusset needles arelowered, the

of action so that the lower jacks do not rise over cams 2 |8 and 264except accidentally as already indicated.

Following the completion of the advanced toe by a plurality of rounds ofrotary knitting narrowing for the toe takes place with the partsassuming the same position as were assumed dure ing the narrowing forthe heel. Following the carrying out of the narrowing to such extentthat all of the long butt needles as well as the end series ofintermediate needles have been removed from action while the centralseries of intermediate butt needles alone remain knitting the tip of thetoe, a movement of the cam disc takes place to initiate the formation ofthe gusset. The parts in Figs. 17 and l20 are shown in the positionsassumed during the bringing ot the gusset needles down into action. Toobtain the proper positioning of these needles the cam |50 is movedinwardly and then outwardly during the same movement of the main camdrum, the inward movement being of such extent that it will engage onlythe long butt needles and taking place at the time the central series ofintermediate butt needles are passing it. The position of the partsshown in Figs. 17 and 20 correspond to a condition in a counterclockwisereciprocation immediately following -this operation. It will be notedthat the central series of intermediate butt needles together with thetrailing series of long butt needles are passing through the knittingcams, the picker |56 having just lifted to inactive position the last ofthe leading long butt needles. Before the leading seriesof long buttneedles reach the position of the cam |44 this cam is moved inwardly tosuch extent that itwill engage these leading long butt needles and lowerthem to a position such that their butts will pass through the openingbetween the cams |44 and |46. The cam |44 will not engage the short orintermediate butt needles. On the next counterclockwise reciprocation itwill be clear that there will remain down in active position all of thelong butt needles together with the central series of intermediate buttneedles while the short butt needles and the end series of intermediatebutt needles will continue to move at the inactive level.

The cams |44 and |46 are again moved outwardly to their previouspositions as soon as the same being true of the `cam |50.

As reciprocation now takes place the gusset will be knit while narrowingcontinues to remove the gusset needles from action one by one.

Following the completion of the necessary courses to form the gusset,cams |48 and |52 are moved inwardly to a sulcient extent to engage thebutts of all of the long butt needles which may remain down in action.Accordingly all of the gusset needles will be raised to the inactivelevel whereupon the continued motion of the main cam drum will withdrawthe cams |48 and |52 from action and the parts will be in thosepositions which they occupied at the beginning of the widening of theheel. The lowering picker will now be brought into action to lower twoneedles at a time while the raising pickers continue to raise them oneata time so that widening of the toe will take place.

After the completion of widening the parts are again brought intoposition for circular knitting, rotation of the needle cylinder beingresumed while the stitch cam movesinwardly to bring down all of theneedles to knitting positions. The

loopers rounds are then knitted using the same main yarn as waspreviously used for the formation of the extended top, the heel and toe.After the completion of the loopers rounds the needles are levelled bywithdrawal of the various cams, the latch ring is raised, and continuedrevolution causes the loops to be pressed off the needles.

By the provision of the main and double sole yarn feeding mechanismswhich have been described, there is avoided any interference betweenthese feeding mechanisms and the wrapping devices which, particularly inthe case where each needle is wrapped, form a cage of wrap yarnsextending upwardly and inwardly from the needles. Furthermore, by theprovision of the double sole yarn receiving Slot in the inner face ofthe latch ring the taking of the double sole yarn at undesired times isprevented.

The above description of the operation has take into account the moreelaborate operation involved when wrap yarns are fed to the needles forthe production of designs; VIn the simpler case when nowrap yarns areused and the wrapping head is lifted while the latch ring remains in itslowered position the operation is similar with the Vexception of thoseoperations involved in the wrapping process. Even throughout a period ofknitting,` for example, during testing, when no wrapping is taking placethe proper angular relationship between the wrap fingers and needles ispreserved by the uninterrupted drive through the shaft 56-58.

One feature of the invention to which particular reference may be madeis the use of nested levers to provide simplicity of connections betweenthe controlling cam` drum and the ultimate parts to be operated. Theshafts H3 and llZll form one set of nested shafts while those includingshaft 362 form another set, thereby avoiding a multiplicity of leversand link connections.

It will be clear that numerous variations may be made in the details ofconstruction without departing from the spirit of the invention asdefined in the following claims.

What I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn totheneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles, means for clamping the auxiliary yarn, and means other than aclamping or cutting means located outside the needles for receiving theauxiliary yarn at predetermined times to prevent its accidentalengagement by needles, said last means consisting of an element providedwith a yarn receiving slot located at the level of hooks of needlesWhich arel not knitting the auxiliary yarn.

2. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles during the formation of each of a plurality of courses, and alatch ring, 4said latch ring being provided with yarn Vguarding means,wholly outside the needles, behind which the auxiliary yarn is locatedat predetermined times to prevent its accidental engagement by needles.

3. A circular-knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with` the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn'to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles, and a latch'ring, said latch ring being 5 provided with anelongated upwardly extending yarn receiving slot extending across theinner face of the latch ring within which the auxiliary yarn may belocated at predetermined times to prevent its accidental engagement byneedles.

4. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles, a latch ring provided with a yarn receiving slot, clamping andcutting means for the auxiliaryV yarn, and means fortaking up slack inthe auxiliary yarn when held by the clamping means to cause it to engagethe slot in the latch ring.

5. A circularA knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certainrof theneedles, a latch ring provided with a yarn receiving slot, clamping andcutting means for the auxiliary yarn, and means for taking up slack inthe aux- 3o Y iliary yarn when held by the clamping means to cause it toenter the slot inthe latch ring.

6. A, circular knittingmachine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, a movable iinger for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certainof the needles, means for clamping the auxiliary yarn and means otherthan a clamping or cutting means located whollyl outside the needles atthe level of hooks of needles which are not knitting the auxiliary yarnfor receiving the auxiliary yarn when its linger is moved to an inactiveposition to prevent its accidental engagement by needles.

7.I A circular knitting machine including a circular-series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn tojtheneedles, a Vmovable finger for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certainof the needles, clampingl and cutting means for the auxiliary yarn, andmeans other than a clamping or cutting means` located outside theneedles for receiving the auxiliary yarn when its ringer is moved to aninactive position to prevent its accidental engagement by needles, saidlast means consisting of an element provided with an elongated yarnreceiving slot vapproximately aligned between-x'tjhe clamping andcutting means and the G0 inactivel position of the Vauxiliary yarnfeeding linger.

8; A circular knitting machine including a circular seriesy of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn totheneedles, a movable finger for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certainof the needles, clamping and cutting means for the auxiliary ya-rn,means located close to the needles for receiving the auxiliary yarn whenits finger is moved to an inactive position to4 prevent its accidentalengagement by needles, saidv last means consisting of an'elementprovidedY withl an elongatedyarnL receiving slot approximately aligned75 between the clamping and cutting means and the inactive position ofthe auxiliary yarn feeding finger, and means for taking up slack in the-auxiliary yarn when held by the clamping means to cause it to enter theslot.

9. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain` of theneedles, said last means including a nger movable either to an active orinactive position, clamping and cutting means movable either to anactive or inactive position simultaneously with the auxiliary yarnfinger, and means providing an elongated slot outside the needles forreceiving the auxiliary yarn when the nger and clamping and cuttingmeans move to their inactive positions.

10. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles forthe formation of stitches;said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to the needles,means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of the needles, saidlast means including a finger movable either` to an active or inactiveposition, clamping and cutting means movable either to an active orinactive position simultaneously with the auxiliary yarn finger, meansproviding an elongated slot outside the needles for receiving theauxiliary yarn when the finger and clamping and cutting means move totheir inactive positions, and means for taking up the auxiliary yarn tocause it to enter the slot.

l1. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating With the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles during the formation of each of a plurality of courses, clampingand cutting means for the main yarn only outside the needles, andclamping and cutting means for the auxiliary yarn outside the needlesoperative upon the auxiliary yarn during the formation of each of saidplurality of courses. 12. A circular knitting machine including acircular series of. needles and mechanism cooperating with the needlesfor the formation of stitches; said mechanism including means forfeeding a main yarn to the needles, a latch ring, means for feeding anauxiliary yarn to only certain of the needles during the formation ofeach of a plurality of courses, said last feeding means being locatedabove the latch ring, means located below the latch ring for holding theauxiliary yarn at predetermined times, and means guarding the auxiliaryyarn when so held to prevent its accidental engagement by needles.

13. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, a latch ring, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to onlycertain of the needles during the formation of each of a plurality ofcourses, said last feeding means being located above the latch ring,means lobetween the needles and the portion of the auxiliary yarnextending between the holding means and the last feeding means.

14. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles in the formation of successive courses, means for clamping theauxiliary yarn, and means other than a clamping or cutting means locatedoutside the needles for receiving the auxiliary yarn at predeterminedtimes `at the level of hooks of needles which are not knitting it toprevent its accidental engagement by such needles.

15. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain of theneedles in the formation of successive courses, means for clamping theauxiliary yarn, means providing a slot at the level of hooks of needleswhich are not knitting the auxiliary yarn for receiving it atpredetermined times to prevent its accidental engagement by suchneedles, and means for taking up slack in the auxiliary yarn when heldby the clamping means to cause it to enter the slot, said last meansincluding a tensioning device between the auxiliary yarn feeding meansand the auxiliary yarn supply.

16. A circular knitting machine including a circular series of needlesand mechanism cooperating with the needles for the formation ofstitches; said mechanism including means for feeding a main yarn to theneedles, means for feeding an auxiliary yarn to only certain or theneedles in the formation of successive courses, means for clamping theauxiliary yarn, means providing a slot at the level of hooks of needleswhich are not knitting the auxiliary yarn for receiving it atpredetermined times to prevent its accidental engagement by suchneedles, and means for taking up slack in the auxiliary yarn when heldby the clamping means to cause it to enter the slot, said last meansincluding a tensioning device between the auxiliary yarn feeding meansand the auxiliary yarn supply, and means for effecting release of theyarn by the tensioning device during knitting thereof.

STANLEY R. SHELMIRE.

